Canto 3 -
Araṇya-kāṇḍa
Chapter 37: Mārīca Advises Rāvaṇa
Text 3.37.6
अपि त्वामीश्वरं प्राप्य कामवृत्तं निरङ्कुशम्।
न विनश्येत्पुरी लङ्का त्वया सह सराक्षसा॥
api tvām īśvaraṁ prāpya kāma-vṛttaṁ niraṅkuśam
na vinaśyet purī laṅkā tvayā saha sa-rākṣasā
api1 tvām = you; īśvaram = as its lord; prāpya = having attained; kāma-vṛttam = do whatever you like; niraṅkuśam = and are not restrained [in any manner]; na vinaśyet = wouldn’t be destroyed; purī = the city; laṅkā = Laṅkā; tvayā saha = you; sa-rākṣasā = and its rākṣasas.
You do whatever you like and are not restrained [in any manner]. Having attained you as its Lord, wouldn’t the city Laṅkā, you and its rākṣasas be destroyed?
GLOSS. Niraṅkuśam indicates that [Rāvaṇa] was like an elephant without [a mahout controlling it with] a goad, that is, he had no man with a sense of self-restriction [to guide him].1